E is for Easter Candy
When you have no kids, and your religion is "none of the above," most of the usual holidays don't have much impact on your life.
The one thing that I consistently look forward to is the seasonal candies that come out for Valentine's Day, Easter, Halloween, and Christmas. There are always a few selections that are so specialized that they aren't available the rest of the year.
Even if I'm not celebrating the occasion in any other way, I look forward to each holiday and my opportunity to indulge in a few of my favorites. As you might imagine, the secular celebration of Easter offers a number of items I like, but there are three in particular that I hate to miss.
A Trio of Easter Goodies
Mini Robin Eggs
I've mentioned before that I am fond of Malted Milk, especially malted milk balls. Well, at Easter, these personal favorites come out in a variation that brings the taste sensation to new heights.
Who knew that putting a candy shell over the simple malted milk ball could be so delicious? Several companies offer their own takes on the malted milk egg at Easter time, but only one - the makers of Whoppers - have also offered a miniature version.
These bite-size treats are addictive to pop, and if you're trying to watch your sugar intake, I highly recommend dishing out pre-measured doses. Otherwise, it's all too easy to just keep going until the whole bag is gone.
The true Mini Robin Egg afficionado knows that there are a couple of ways to eat these goodies. You can pop one in your mouth and suck on it like a hard candy, experiencing the unique flavors of each layer as they melt away. You can delicately nibble off the outer chocolate and candy coatings, leaving the naked malted milk ball to enjoy as a solo flavor. (This technique is more often reserved for the full-size, easier to derobe Robin Eggs, though with practice it can be applied to the minis.) I will sometimes put one in my mouth and bite it in half, then apply the hard candy method; the malted milk center goes first this way, its flavor influenced by the chocolate and candy shell as it melts. Or you can simply go for the gusto, and blend all the flavors as you chew these Easter nubbins whole.
Cadbury Creme Egg - The Spring Robin of Easter Candy!
How do they get that yellow yolk of creme center to sit so neatly in the middle of the white that fills the rest of the Cadbury Creme Egg? I haven't a clue, but that won't stop me from starting the Cadbury Creme Egg watch every year. Like robins as harbingers fo spring, these milk-chocolately goodies are often the first signs of the Easter Candy season, their boxes and bins popping up in supermarkets and drugstores everywhere.
The milk chocolate in a Cadbury Creme Egg is classic, soft, Cadbury-style, and therefore melts readily in your fingers. I avoid the mess by taking the foil wrap and crumbling it down into a sort of holder for the egg. It's not perfect, but it keeps most of the melting chocolate off my fingers.
I usually start eating these at the large end. (The pointy end is a little easier to hold in my foil grip, and the chocolate shell is a little thinner and easier to bite at the large end.) Consuming a Cadbury Creme Egg is a series of alternating nibbles of the chocolate shell, with licks of the creme filling to keep it from flowing over the sides.
I usually reserve eating a Creme Egg until I know I'm going to be able to devote my attention to it, because it doesn't withstand interruption well. Where do you put down a half-eaten Creme Egg? Well, it can be done, if you roll the foil into something of a nest shape. But why would you want to stop midway through such a smooth, chocolatey treat?
Peeps, All In A Row - a True Easter Tradition
What would Easter be without these classic icons, Marshmallow Peeps? Marshmallow Peeps have so deeply ingrained themselves into American culture that entire websites are devoted to Peeps fandom. They are the subjects of extensive scientific research; entire flash games are devoted to them. They have their own hometown, Peepsville. This is only the tip of the iceberg. To make sure you catch all the Peeps fun, including recipes, arts & crafts, humor, and more, you'll want to visit geekbabe's Big List of Peeps Links.
The biggest dilemma most people face about eating Peeps is stale or fresh? Some people favor eating Peeps right away, while they're still soft and gooey; others prefer to open the package and let the Peeps age for days, weeks, or even months, achieving a chewy, taffy-like state.
I fall in the fresh camp. I start at one end of the row of conjoined quintuplets, peeling an individual from the crowd. The tail goes first, usually. Sometimes I'll nibble off the little dots of chocolate that mark the eyes. A quick nip at the beak, then the head, and finally, I pop the rest of the Peep into my mouth. When I really want to savor the experience, I'll sometimes lick the sugar off a piece of the Peep before eating it.
The most gourmet experience I ever had with Peeps came one day when I happened to be consuming some while sitting near a small tea light. I looked at the sugar-coated marshmallow in my hand, looked at the tea light, and....well, you put fire and marshmallow together and what do you suppose you get? Toasted Marshmallow Peeps, of course! I didn't put the Peep on a fork and toast it all at once - rather, I held it by one end in my fingers, and held the other over the candle flame long enough to see the toasting begin. Blowing on the toasted portion lightly to cool it, then biting it off, I experienced a tasty joy that few consider trying.
What's Your Favorite?
These are my top three - what Easter goodies do you lust after? Do you have any special approach to eating them? Are you able to share, or are you an Easter Candy Hoarder?
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